A Trash4Cash kiosk has been installed at Padang Lintau in Manjoi, located in the Malaysian city of Ipoh, so that locals can receive rewards for the recyclable waste they turn in. Some accepted items are plastic containers, paper, cardboard boxes, electronic scrap, used cooking oil and aluminium cans.
The people interested in the recycling drive need to download and register on the Trash4Cash mobile app so that the customers can redeem the reward points accumulating in the profiles. Moreover, they can write their names and phone number on a tag provided at the kiosk that can be stamped on the recyclables.
The kiosk will offer payments in alignment with the market rate. Used cooking oil will fetch a person RM 2.50 per kg; plastic containers are valued at 40sen per kg, old newspapers are exchangeable at 35sen per kg, cardboard boxes at 25sen per kg and aluminium cans have been valued at RM 2.30 per kg.
The kiosk will be accepting waste materials 24/7. Among the materials collected, aluminium can retain its original properties even after passing through rigorous recycling processes since it is infinitely recyclable.
Moreover, primary aluminium production utilises more energy and is extremely process-intensive than secondary aluminium production. Recycling aluminium will therefore curtail intense carbon emissions and form a circular economy wherein the aluminium, once produced, stays in the loop forever.
The mayor of Ipoh council, Datuk Rumaizi Baharin specified the kiosk is the first of its kind in the country that uses solar power and presents a digital analogy. This initiative can also be referred to as the first collaboration between Majuperak Utilities Management Sdn Bhd (MUMSB) and Ipoh City Council.
The mayor spoke: “The kiosk was set up in line with the ‘Green and Digital Technology’ era and our vision to become a smart green city by 2030.”
“The recyclable collection service actually started in 2020 and went through several enhancement phases, adding value and making a positive impact on the city council’s solid waste management,” he said during the inauguration of the kiosk.
“The city council has also decided to use the Trash4Cash app to collect recyclables from door to door,” Rumaizi Baharin asserted.
“Residents and industries can request for the collection service through the mobile app or call 019-472 9020,” he seemed quite optimistic about the development of other auxiliary forums in the upcoming decade.
Rumaizi claimed that previously non-government firms had tried to conduct a similar business of rewarding users for recycling, but those protocols did not survive due to high operational costs and maintenance.
He also remarked that the city council would work with MUMSB in close proximity so that the Trash4cash service can remain active.
“With government intervention, we can think of giving subsidies to ensure the service continues,” he concluded.
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